MLS Power Rankings: Top teams stay in place after Week 15

Only MLS league games will be reflected in the rankings. Rankings are voted on by MLSsoccer.com editorial staff; words by Alicia Rodriguez.

BIGGEST MOVERS: VAN, SEA +3; RSL -3

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LAST WEEK: 1

HIGH: 1 | LOW: 7

A marquee draw on the road keeps Atlanta atop the Power Rankings. Still in first place in the East and the Supporters' Shield races, the Five Stripes will likely be nervous about the status of current MLS MVP frontrunner Miguel Almiron following his early exit vs. NYCFC.

Sporting also post a gritty road draw, this one in Portland, and show their defense is really back to its top form. They sit a point behind Atlanta in the Shield standings, and perhaps the World Cup break will give Peter Vermes' men a bit of time to rest before the remainder of the schedule comes along.

Crew SC could have, probably should have, posted a statement win at home against the Red Bulls, but some wayward finishing in the heat prevented that. Considering they are nine games unbeaten in league play, Columbus are still in fine fettle.

The Red Bulls still have games in hand on many other teams, and one of those games to make up points comes Wednesday, against a Sounders team showing faint signs of life. Something tells us Jesse Marsch will be eager to add to Seattle's woes and remain in the Shield hunt, too.

NYCFC may still have the same players, but this will be a different team now in the Domenec Torrent era. On the bright side, the new head coach will get a proper World Cup break to get to know his group, and vice versa.

Dallas' win over Montreal initially looked like it would be a romp, but the Impact made them work to keep a two-goal lead over 90 minutes. But FCD have won four straight league games and are unbeaten in seven, and really seem ready to challenge Sporting for Western Conference supremacy.

A draw against Sporting KC isn't a terrible result for the Timbers, but they're likely fairly disappointed to not have gotten a home win. They've got an Open Cup game against LA this week, and then a huge league game, at Atlanta in two weeks.

It was frequently ugly, but LAFC found a way to take a win from a game where they looked destined to lose after coughing up a lead in the second half. The defense was completely flustered by San Jose's counterattack, but hey, they rode their luck and got another wild win.

Teal Bunbury continues what looks like a career year and the Revs continue plugging along. Depending on how other results go, a win in San Jose on Wednesday could move New England right in with the top Eastern teams in the standings.

The Dynamo bounced back from their bad week on the road with a standard home win against the team in the worst form in years. Wilmer Cabrera will get some time to work on road showings with the next league contest coming in Kansas City.

Jonathan Osorio is having a career year, and speculation is rumbling that he may be catching the eye of foreign teams. TFC, meanwhile, will feel they need to get another win this week, against road-weary D.C. United, to keep hope of an eventual resurgence this year alive.

Speaking of interest abroad, Alphonso Davies has been the best player for Vancouver all season and his latest display of taking over a game came in the eventual rout against Orlando. We know hyping kids is dangerous, but Davies certainly looks truly special, already.

Talent may have given LA a big edge against RSL coming in, but form was in RSL's favor. No matter, as Nick Rimando's mistake opened the door and the Galaxy came tumbling through, picking up a needed home win in the process.

RSL are one of the teams with no games for two weeks, and the time off may give Mike Petke's group a chance to rest and train. A home game against the Quakes probably won't hurt their objective in shaking off the Galaxy loss, either.

Inconsistency remains the buzzword for the Fire, but could Chicago get a good result in a tough locale against the Rapids on Wednesday? Or will they allow Colorado to snap their nine-game losing skid in all competitions?

The Sounders had only lost three league games in a row, but the growing sense of doom plus the team never really experiencing morale dropping to this extent in MLS meant they really needed the win against D.C., and they got it. Welcome back, Nico!

The Loons are in the middle of the longest bye in MLS around the World Cup. Beyond that, Darwin Quintero has shown he's worth paying for in his short tenure -- will Minnesota be looking to make any more big acquisitions in the summer transfer window?

If the Lions lose in Montreal on Wednesday, they will have fully canceled out their earlier six-game winning streak with six straight losses in league play. There's still plenty of time to turn it around and reach the playoffs for the first time, but they are looking mighty shaky right now.

The recent West Coast mojo died for D.C. in Seattle, as they couldn't hold on for a result after Lodeiro made his return. We're nearly a month out from the Audi Field opener, but there are still three more league games to play on the road, and United could use another win or two.

Credit to the Impact for trying to get back into the game against Dallas after going down two goals early -- in previous games, they might have just let the intensity drop and let in five or six. But Remi Garde's group still remains in a precarious place in the standings.

Gut punch of the year has been taken by the Earthquakes, after letting in an equalizer in the 90th minute and the winner in the 97th. It's a shame, too, because it overshadowed Chris Wondolowski's spirited performance in the second half to put the Quakes ahead.

On one hand, playing in Houston is tough. That's about all you can say to mitigate things for the Rapids, however, who have broken a team record in consecutive losses, eight in the league and nine in all competitions. Maybe a topsy-turvy Fire side on Wednesday will give them a chance to get out of the rut?